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Blu-ray Review: A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy, Come Home

September 7, 2016

By John Corrado

Released in 1969, A Boy Named Charlie Brown marked the big screen debut of Charles Schulz’s beloved comic strip characters. After being humiliated for having his kites get destroyed by the “kite-eating tree,” and experiencing a brutal loss for his team on the baseball diamond, Charlie Brown finds himself competing in a school spelling bee, desperately trying to prove that he can be a winner.

Opening with the classic looking at clouds scene, and enlivened by some trippy musical sequences, A Boy Named Charlie Brown still holds up for the way it brings to screen the mix of humour, pathos and philosophical insight that the comic strips became famous for.

And the way the film frankly addresses Charlie Brown’s anxiety and depression is impressive, especially by sugar coated current standards. This includes a painfully funny and brilliantly sardonic scene where Lucy projects slides of his faults onto the wall in a bullyish attempt to help him.

The Blu-ray has no bonus features.

A Boy Named Charlie Brown is 80 minutes and rated G.

Released in 1972, and the second big screen appearance for these characters, Snoopy, Come Home has always been a fan favourite, and it remains so for a reason. When Snoopy receives a letter from a little girl named Lila who is in the hospital, he heads out to find her with his bird buddy Woodstock, leaving Charlie Brown worried that his increasingly independent dog might not return.

Featuring catchy tunes by Disney songwriters Robert and Richard Sherman, and filled with plenty of wonderful little moments that range from endearing to offbeat, Snoopy, Come Home is a delightful and also heartfelt adventure for these beloved characters.

The film remains one of their best and most entertaining big screen outings for the Peanuts gang, with an engaging story that strengthens the bond between Charlie Brown and Snoopy by heartbreakingly testing it. It’s worth revisiting now, and fans who haven’t seen it yet are in for a real treat.